SOHOMINIUM

Resolutions / Re-Solutions 2012

2011-12-31T17:47:00.000+08:00

It is time for drawing up yearly resolutions again. I think what we really need is not more yearly resolutions but re-solutions ( replicable / repeatable solutions). In this context, I would very much like to repeat what I had written on 1^st January 2010: “ Be a Genuine Child. Try the SOHO Tricycle ”.

Individuals and companies will be facing new challenges in the form of convergence of crisis of Finance / Fuel / Foods etc in the coming years. The solution will likely be the essential quest for sustainability, resilience and harmony in the areas of Economy / Equity / Environment, based on cyclical, rather than linear mode of operation.

Indeed, there will be three essential Cycles (as illustrated with the help of the SOHO Tricycle) that will determine our Quality of Working, Quality of Living and Quality of Life.

The Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) Cycle will determine how effectively and efficiently we earn our living, bringing with it the usual tool-kits of Productivity, Innovations and Creativity. The promotion of entrepreneurship in the form of Small-Office-Home Office (SOHO1) is also very much encouraged. This is the Economy area. It is essentially Acting Locally. This will improve our Quality of Working.

The Permaculture Cycle advocates the global approach in solving local problems (the so-called Re-Localization Movement), while emphasizing diversity, resilience and harmony. The complexity of the environment is well respected and the conservation of energy practiced. The role of the Sun, and the associated Solar Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO2) spacecraft, is well acknowledged, confirming the need for more Re-Solarization efforts world-wide (such as solar panels and trees or photosynthesis). This is the Environment area. It is essentially Thinking Globally. This will improve our Quality of Living.

The Holon Cycle, a reference to the Self-Organizing Holarchic Open (SOHO3) system (Prigogine, Nobel Prize), gives emphasis to the inter-connectedness and inter-dependence of things and beings in the Cosmos via the Holarchy structure (rather than Hierarchy structure). Everything is “always partial, already whole” or “box-in-a-box-in-a-box” (Bibib). Bibib is a good way to define a holon. We are inter-connected and inter-dependent. This is the Equity area. It is essentially Connecting Cosmically. This will improve our Quality of Life.

So, we have Three Cycles embodied in the Tricycle. Let live the Tricycle Way in the New Year 2012.

CouchSurfing: Collaborative Consumption and Prosumerism

2011-11-30T15:46:00.008+08:00

I must say that I get to know couchsurfing much better now, after having hosted four individual guests and taken part in many couchsurfers-related events / meetings etc., in a short span of three weeks under the couchsurfing arrangement.

It was certainly a refreshing experience. If you have not hosted any guest, my recommendation is to join the game (it can even make you feel young …. certainly in my case). From the various conversations I had with other guests / hosts that I managed to meet up, I would tentatively give the following observations:

Opportunities to meet diverse range of peoples from different countries
Diverse reasons for traveling / vagabonding
Different methods of funding / financing
Wide range of dress codes / back-packing / equipment etc
Work / Job / Volunteering opportunities etc.
Possible reverse cultural shock etc., upon return?

I came across couchsurfing while researching on Collaborative Consumption (CC). I would certainly say that Couchsurfing is a very good example of CC. I like and support the concept very much. It would be beautiful to keep it going. The issue is how to make the game truly sustainable for the participants (both the guests and the hosts). I have the following feelings / observations:

Each guests and hosts (person /place /locality) are different
Understand or know the hosts / places / locality. Read their profiles. Don't send a “blank” couch request.
We are not just consumers. We are all producers as well. We are prosumers. Share your skills.
Consider in what way you can be “productive” to the hosts / place / locality (rendering help in whatever way that enables you to leave the host / place / locality in a better condition / value than the time you first arrive). Share you skills. Be a true prosumer.
Your “productiveness” could be in the areas of the Triple Bottom Line (People-Planet-Profit), covering the socio-economic environmental aspects. Be a true prosumer. Share your skills.
Even if your stay is short, try your every best to be a true prosumer. Share your skills.

Couchsurfing and other Collaborative Consumption must be Prosumerism to be truly SUSTAINABLE.

The CouchSurfing Culture

2011-10-31T12:41:00.000+08:00

In the course of my search for a business model for Collaborative Consumption, I came across a social phenomenon / culture called CouchSurfing (www.couchsurfing.org). I immediately see the complementary / supplementary connection between what I have been promoting (Hypercube @ Soholand) and CouchSurfing.

From the viewpoint of the hosts (with proper safeguards and prudence), CouchSurfing is a perfect example of gainfully utilizing excess capacity for the common goods, social-economic-ecologically.What is more important, a highly productive social capital can be built up that can benefit all parties involved.

In my short span of involvement (on-line and off-line) with this highly dynamic phenomenon / culture, I have come across diversity as / at its core (expression of good, not-so-good and bad, as in all societal dealings). I must also quick to add that the positive far out-ranks the negative.

I look forward to further involvement / participation in CouchSurfing in the days ahead. I think you should certainly do the same, not necessarily as a hosting party.

Pareto Paradigm

2011-09-30T23:12:00.000+08:00

The Pareto Principle (80-20 Rule) states that, for many events, roughly 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes. One of the most common examples is that 80% of your sales come from 20% of your clients. Similarly, the richest 20% own 80% of all wealth.

Interestingly, the Pareto Principle (or its variants) finds its way into our personal lifes. I came across two interesting books that dwelt on this topic, with very enlightening contents.

Life's 2% Solution ( Simple Steps to achieve Happiness and Balance) by Marcia Hughes
0.8 Living the Healthy Way (in Chinese) by Tao Tao

Marcia maintained that “By dedicating just 30 minutes a day (or an equivalent amount in bigger, weekly clusters) toward satisfying an inner yearning, you will transform your life. You will gain an inner sense of well-being, and most important, you will no longer be at the mercy of superficial routines competing for priority.”

The inner yearning is what Marcia called “Espirit d'Core” or the spirit at the core of your being. It is that unique element that makes up one's fundamental core self . It dwells in our innermost self. Our core spirit must be integrated and expressed in our daily living in order to be fulfilled and happy.

Tao Tao, on the other hand, devoted his book on the 80% Living Paradigm that will guarantee the attainment of the proverbial Golden Mean in Health, Wealth and Happiness.

Tao Tao maintained that we do not need to be 100% wealthy (20% sense of poverty will be good), we do not need 100% comfort (20% inconvenience will be good), we do not need 100% modernity (20% raw state will be good).

Here we are: real practitioners of the Pareto Paradigm.

What Is SOHO 2.0? And SOHO 3.0?

2011-08-14T14:49:00.000+08:00

I gave a presentation yesterday at the forum organized by Gerakan National Youth entitled "New Breed For International Trading". My topic was "SOHO: Starting International Business at Home".The proceeding can be viewed and down-loaded here.

During Q&A, I was asked by Datin Paduka Yong Dai Ying what was the difference between SOHO and SOHO 2.0 which I briefly touched. To which I only managed to give a very brief answer which did not do justice to the question. I wish to elaborate further here.

As mentioned in my presentation, SOHO could follow a certain developmental path that could eventually lead to the formation of business conglomerates that thrives on consumption growth (globalization and conspicuous consumption)which ultimately leads to the socio-economic-environmental degradation that we see today, unless the Triple-Bottom-Line (TBL) of Profit-People-Planet paradigm is followed. Even that, the constraint and limitation of "growth" is always an issue due to the constraints imposed on or by the over-all ecosystem.

The ultimate solution is a Transition to Sustainability which would require some sort of "voluntary simplicity". This Transition to Sustainability is what I would call SOHO 2.0. It is " The Future is the Past". Back to the old local Trade or Skill economy, with the modern touch. Globalization will eventually lead back to Localization or Re-Localization or more correctly Glocalization. This is SOHO 2.0 --- a Transition to Sustainability / Simplicity, a sort of "retiree economy".

Will there be a SOHO 3.0? You can find out more here, as well as other related contents pertaining to the SOHO Taxonomy.

Houses That Transform You: HyperCube

2011-07-27T12:47:00.000+08:00

We used to transform houses, retrofitting or refurbishing them. Now we have houses that TRANSFORM you.

Life is a continuous Live-Work-Learn-Play (LWLP) process. Your existing home (or house you plan to acquire soon) is most likely NOT ideally suited for true and efficient LWLP process.

There is a whole new way of acquiring LWLP properties that is characterized by the following features:

LIVE: Quality of Living via No-Money-Down (NMD) Property Investment method to secure your first and subsequent home / properties.
WORK: Quality of Working via Lean Start-Up (LSU) approach to Entrepreneurship and Micro-Enterprises
LEARN: Quality of Connecting is true learning achieved through discovering the quality of connections between things and peoples.
PLAY: Quality of Life is appreciating the Meaning of Life via doing things we enjoy and have passion for.

Such LWLP properties are graphically presented as Hypercube. Hypercube properties are therefore specially structured or constituted for true and efficient LWLP process. Acquiring such Hypercube properties enable you build up Capital (or Equity) and achieve healthy Revenue (or Cash Flow) while establish a profitable Business (Entrepreneurship) in a sustainable Community (Connections). The purpose of Hypercube is to Incubate (Entrepreneur) / Accelerate (Business) / Transform (Life).

Hypercube is Money-making (Dollar) and Meaning-making (Sense). Truly Dollar & Sense and a new social awakening! We are giving birth to the Hypercube Social Movement (HSM). Come and join us! More relevant details at SOHOLAND (SOHO Learning And Network Demo).

We used to transform houses. Now we have houses that TRANSFORM you.

Double Rich in Dollars and Senses

2011-06-28T16:24:00.000+08:00

Being rich can be defined in two seemingly contradictory ways:

(1) Rich in Dollars
(2) Rich in Senses (NOT Cents but Senses)

The first definition (in financial or monetary terms) is more commonly utilized and accepted. It has a QUANTITATIVE connotation.It is also often associated with Quality of Living (ecology) and Quality of Working (economy).

The second definition (in terms of feeling / emotion or meaning) is much less appreciated or emphasized. It has a QUALITATIVE connotation.It is also often associated with Quality of Connecting (equity) and Quality of Life (emancipation).

So, what is the relationship amongst Quality of Living (ecology), Quality of Working (economy), Quality of Connecting (equity) and Quality of Life (emancipation)?

This relationship is best illustrated by examining the relationship between the so-called PLAN A (Business-As-Usual) and PLAN B (Sustainable Future).PLAN A is more about Dollars, while PLAN B is more about Senses.

Combining PLAN A and PLAN B in one single stroke would result in us being Double Rich in Dollars and Senses. This is how the Hypercube Integral Lifestyle is designed to do, attaining Live-Work-Learn-Play integration thus achieving Quality of Living (Ecology) / Quality of Working (Economy) / Quality of Connecting (Equity) / Quality of Life (Emancipation), as illustrated in the following matrix table:

The 4-Es is much more than mere Triple-Bottom-Line of Economy-Equity-Ecology or Profit-People-Planet. It concerns our personal and humanity's Freedom / Quality of Life / Emancipation.

The Hypercube Integral Lifestyle is a practical implementation of that grand scheme of things.

Please join me in this journey.

Verge Culture vs. Edge Culture

2011-05-31T00:24:00.000+08:00

Verge Culture and Verge Generation are new social terms coming to fashion, while Edge Culture or Third Culture are hardly noticed.

Comprised of the first generation to grow up with the Internet, Verge Culture is a new, growing multicultural group of teens and young adults who communicate digitally and globally to spread the latest trends in music, fashion, technology, art and action sports. It is a group that defines itself by ideas, instead of race or geographic location. They are alpha-consumers and early adopters who crave the latest and the newest, and it is their taste and buying patterns that influence larger popular culture.

It is a cut and paste culture tapping a convergence of tastes and styles gleaned globally through the web, mashing them up and making them their own. They communicate digitally, are socially progressive, and are the most tech savvy people on the planet, their musical tastes and interests are as broad as they wish them to be.

The Edge Culture or Third Culture, on the other hand, consists of those scientists and other thinkers in the empirical world who, through their work and expository writing, are taking the place of the traditional intellectual in rendering visible the deeper meanings of our lives, redefining who and what we are.

In 1959 C.P. Snow published a book titled The Two Cultures. On the one hand, there were the literary intellectuals; on the other, the scientists. He noted with incredulity that during the 1930s the literary intellectuals, while no one was looking, took to referring to themselves as "the intellectuals," as though there were no others. This new definition by the "men of letters" excluded scientists such as the astronomer Edwin Hubble, the mathematician John von Neumann, the cyberneticist Norbert Wiener, and the physicists Albert Einstein, Niels Bohr, and Werner Heisenberg.

Would the Verge Culture and Edge or Third Culture be on a converging or diverging course? Or are we on the verge or edge of culture, for better or worse?

HARMONEY (Harmony + Money)

2011-04-27T23:48:00.001+08:00

The invented-word HARMONEY (Harmony + Money) is a beautiful way to describe financial planning:- balance of Life and Money. In fact, there is such a web-site (www.harmoney.com) that carries the tag-line “make your money smarter” that is devoted to topics on financial planning.

However, I think the concept should cover a much broader perspective than mere finance, important undoubtedly nevertheless. The advocacy of the Triple Bottom Line (TBL) of Profit / People / Planet certainly gives a more balanced or harmonious picture, although the TBL approach is more applicable to commercial entities than individuals, very much similar to the tenet of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).

So, how could or should individual achieve Harmoney? The Live-Work-Learn-Play (LWLP) might be a good practical model for individuals (Body-Mind-Spirit-Wisdom). Appropriately executed and followed through, the LWLP model could yield the following results:

Live: Consume sustainably
Work: Produce sustainably
Learn: Life-Long-Learning ensures continuous improvements
Play: Feeling of Liberation / Enlightenment / Peace (certainly NOT hedonistic sense)

This LWLP model is currently being implemented in the HyperCube project at SOHO*land, particularly in the HyperCube Life Course.

No-Money-Down Property Investment Seminar

2011-03-29T12:11:00.000+08:00

Last week I attended the No-Money-Down Property Investment Seminar organized by FREEMEN (Speaker Michael Tan).

The gist of the NMD approach (if I can summarized in so many words) is getting tenants to pay for your monthly mortgage repayments via your friendly bankers, assuming the property is acquired at 20% off market price and gives 8% rental return. If you can't "happily" deal with any one of them consistently and continually, your property will then become "fire sale" very soon. I think this is the risk for NMD approach. There is actually and really no "Free Lunch".Managing tenants consistently well could be a really big challenge and a full-time jobs after you have acquired a portfolio.

Is there a better and safer "Substitution" for "Tenants"? What do you think?

I am actively exploring this possibility via a new Business Model (something to do with my approach on Hypercube-Home).

In this approach the "tenants" would be "substituted" with "subscribers / share-holders". In other words, I will be using Crowd-Sourcing methodology to replace "tenants" with "subscribers / share-holders", via the Hypercube-Home concept: Live-Work-Learn-Play (LWLP).

I think I have a better Business Model than the mere No-Money-Down. This could well be No-Money-Down & Loan-FREE!(I'm serious).

Anyone interested could click the following "like" button / "follow this blog" (or just email me at erico@pc.jaring.my)to keep-in-touch and be updated on the latest development of the HyperCube-Home program.

Visualising HyperCube Home!

2011-03-21T16:04:00.001+08:00

This is how a Hypercube could be graphically visualized: an n-dimensional analogue of a square (n=2) and a cube (n=3).

The 4-dimensional Live-Work-Learn-Play (LWLP)at one location HyperCube Home / Property would have very dynamic movement / integrity ... a truly holistic lifestyle: It is also combining "Business" and "Property Investment" and "Lifestyle" and "Financial Freedom (Emancipation)"!

It is also about achieving the 4-E: Economy, Ecology, Equity and Emancipation!

HyperCube ready for Test-Drive

2011-02-16T16:19:00.000+08:00

HyperCube enables you to Live-Work-Learn-Play at one location, complete with condominium facilities, PLUS in-situ Business Center with high-speed optic fiber Broad-band Internet access, ideal for traveling executive / global nomad. BONUS: fully-automatic relaxation-therapeutic massage chair & KTV home theater system.

The present HyperCube is situated at Langat Jaya Condominium, Hulu Langat, Cheras, just south-east fringe of Kuala Lumpur, some 25-minute traveling time by car to the City center, with excellent highway access.

Experience and Learn more about the HyperCube Integral Lifestyle that promises to be transformational life values system. Truly Live-Work-Learn-Play at one location for only US$18 (or RM55) / room per night!

What is "LoSoPhoMo"?

2011-01-31T23:43:00.000+08:00

What is “LoSoPhoMo”?

The smart phone has brought about what Steve Rubin is calling “a perfect storm of technologies coming together that combine local, social, photo and mobile (LoSoPhoMo)”.

What is the significance of this LoSoPhoMo tool? This would be best answered in the context of the Media “Clover Leaf” – Mainstream (Paid), New Media (Earned), Social Media (Social) and Blogs (Owned). The purpose of these media is, of course, public engagement or system of engagement (“conversation”) rather than system of records (printed or digital pages), thus enabling effective two-way communication.

Obviously, the LoSoPhoMo approach enables the most effective and efficient two-way communications. In other words, the future is “LoSoPhoMo”.

We therefore have to be “LoSoPhoMo” literate!

Hypercubes In Condominium

2010-12-31T21:30:00.000+08:00

Hypercubes are the latest trend in property development, creating specialized and dedicated areas for exclusive utilization by residents for entertainment, workout, learning and socializing etc., thus truly integrating Live-Work-Learn-Play concept on one location – an Integral Lifestyle.

As illustrated in the accompanying picture, the Hypercube could consist of Home Theatre / KTV / HTPC & HDMI-enabled Media Centre for Business Startup & Entertainment

Such hypercubes enhance both the capital and rental values of the properties concerned., as they act as valuable extension to residents' homes, and improve the quality of life of the occupants in many ways.

I am actively exploring the business opportunity of such Hypercubes in condominium, especially those that could benefit from such incorporation of Hypercubes.

The New Year 2011 could hopefully see the realization of such business venture,perhaps utilizing existing available units, and incorporating the "philosophy" of SOHO Technology, suitably modified.

The New Year would certainly be exciting!

Agricultural Land In Exchange for Condominium Units

2010-11-30T23:21:00.001+08:00

This month marks the conclusion of the sale of my 10-acre agricultural land in Semenyih which I had held for more than two decades. I felt both sad and relieved. Sad because it is hard saying farewell to hundreds of adopted children (agro-forestry plants of many kinds). Relieved because I had perhaps found a better foster parent (the new owner) for them, hoping that the new owner would provide more conducive growth environment.

Part of the sale proceeds I have been investing in condominium units, management of which would hopefully be less physically taxing, but with a whole range of new managerial challenges.

I do miss the fresh air that agro-forestry provided, and wonder if the “concrete jungle” I am entering into could provide a new kind of fresh air in the months ahead.

10.10.10 and Its Fulfillment

2010-10-10T18:32:00.000+08:00

Today is Sunday, 10^th October 2010 (10.10.10) considered the most fulfilled set of number whichever way you chose to look at it. It has the feel of fullness and completeness. For instance, it is a good day to get married (the media are full of report on this), or to start a business venture (the Company Commission of Malaysia, business registration authority in Malaysia, is to open its office today even though it is a Sunday).

In support of the call to serious attention of global climate change, the 1010GLOBAL.ORG has chosen to call the date the Global Day of Doing to reduce carbon dioxide emission by 10% starting from year 2010, starting with you and me, and everyone else..

Suzy Welch, in her book 10-10-10, gives a new meaning to this set of number. In the book, she talked about 10-minutes, 10-months and 10-years as full time spectrum of short-term / medium-term and long-term.

I plan to register a new business venture with the Company Commission of Malaysia, by cycling to the nearby transit station, thereby reducing my carbon emission by 10% and hopefully the new business venture will give me good returns in 10-month and experience tremendous growth in the 10-year to come.

What do you plan to do today?

I am my Connectome

2010-09-30T22:50:00.000+08:00

In a recent TED presentation, Sebastian Seung is mapping a new model of the brain, studying the connections between each neuron -- our "connectome." It's as individual as our genome. In other words, my connectomes “determine” my character and personality, just like my genetic makeup “defines” my being.

Presumably, we could improve our being by having more “connections” (neuron or otherwise) via the following methods (?):

(1) Life-Long-Learning

(2) Frequent Brain-storming sessions

(3) Deep meditation

(4) Networking (Social or Professional)

Thus the connectomes could be of two types, one acting internally (similar to Meme) and the other externally (perhaps called Zene).

We could then have a perfect theory / hypothesis for human behavior, captured in just three words: Gene, Meme and Zene. Period.

Transit Oriented Development and Health Benefits

2010-08-31T09:36:00.004+08:00

The recent combination of Biking and Property Auction Investment has really made me appreciate the importance and desirability of Transit Oriented Development (TOD) and its numerable advantages and benefits, including the Health Benefits.

Properties served by good public transport network / transit system certainly fetch better rental incomes and command higher capital appreciation. These effects are even more magnified in light of the Transition Town movement (transition to post-petroleum era) with emphasis on sustainable livability and social-environmental friendliness. These advantages are well incorporated in Transit Oriented Developments, particularly in cases where cycling / walking is given rightful place, with its Complete Street / Smart Growth / Multi-Modal Communities concept whereby the needs of motorists, pedestrians, cyclists and other road users are given appropriate emphasis.

Although North Americans only walk an average of about 6 daily minutes overall, public transit users spend a median of 19 daily minutes walking, which nearly achieves the target of 22 daily minutes of moderate physical activity (Besser and Dannenberg 2005; Weinstein and Schimek 2005). Using pedometers and surveys to track walking activity, Wener and Evans (2007) found that train commuters averaged 30% more walking, more frequently reported walking for 10 minutes or more, and were 4 times more likely to achieve the 10,000 daily steps recommended for fitness and health, than car commuters (Source: Victoria Transport Policy Institute: Evaluating Public Transportation Health Benefits, 14 June 2010).

Public transportation can provide significant health benefits. People who live or work in

communities with high quality public transportation tend to own fewer vehicles, drive less, and use alternative modes more than they would in more automobile-oriented locations. This can provide large reductions in traffic crashes and pollution emissions, increases in physical fitness and mental health, and improved access to healthy food, housing and medical care. These health benefits are significant in magnitude compared with other planning objectives, but are often overlooked or undervalued in conventional transport planning.

To know more about how cycling could be an important link in this wonderful scenario, you might want to explore C.I.C.L.E (cicle.org): Cyclists Inciting Changes thru Live Exchange.

How To Get Attention (Wherever You Go)

2010-07-18T08:58:00.000+08:00

How to get attention wherever you go. Just like Allen & Her Sheep (The Unusual Cargo). And sometimes it is better NOT to ask!

I also sometimes move around the city on my mountain-bike, without any unusual cargo, that is.

Gas Well In-A-Can: A New Lifestyle Model / Prototype / Protocol?

2010-06-21T11:50:00.002+08:00

In this fast-pace modern world, we place a lot of emphasis on efficiency and speed. Hence, we have many fast-food chains, and things come to us “In-A-Box” or other similar schemes (including “get-rich-quick”).

You might think that “Gas Well In-A-Can” could be our ultimate solution to the energy crisis. Yes and No.

Yes, the “Gas Well In-A-Can” could very well our first step toward a local and global solution to the Convergence of Crisis of Food / Fuel / Finance and Global Warming. No, it is not everyone’s immediate ideal solution, although it certainly could truly be a revolutionary Model / Prototype / Protocol for a New Lifestyle that gives prominence to local energy movement / local food movement / slow money movement / permaculture movement / small carbon footprint or carbon-negative movement / re-localisation movement and transition movement etc.

This is made possible by the “pyrolysis” process (combustion in oxygen-deprived condition) utilized in the “Gas Well In-A-Can” contraption that is easily built in a DIY manner. The end products are “syn-gas” that is an efficient energy source and biochar or charcoal that is an excellent source for soil amendment that is good for agriculture food production. The whole process is carbon-negative energy-producing cycle, therefore resulting in reduction of CO2 in the atmosphere, thus reducing global warming.

Furthermore, the feedstock for the pyrolysis process is usually biomass waste, therefore encouraging local waste recycling and management. The “Gas Well In-A-Can” is therefore a working Model / Prototype / Protocol for Local Production / Local Consumption with small carbon-footprint. This is the process of Re-Localisation / Transition to a New Lifestyle in overcoming the convergence of crisis of Food / Fuel / Finance and Global Warming.

More detail on “Everyman’s Gas Well in a can” (including DIY descriptions) can be found at http://www.greaterdemocracy.org/archives/983

Business Plan, Business Model and Pivot

2010-05-18T22:45:00.002+08:00

A recent article by Steve Blank nicely illuminated the important differences between a Business Plan and a Business Model and the process of Pivoting.

A business plan is the execution document that large companies write when planning product-line extensions where customer, market and product features are known. The plan describes the execution strategy for addressing these “knowns.”

A startup is not executing a series of knowns. Most startups are facing unknown customer needs, an unknown product feature set and startup is an organization formed to search for a repeatable and scalable business model. That means that writing a static business plan adds no value to starting a company, as the plan does not represent the iterative nature of the search for the model. A simple way to think about it is that in a startup no business plan survives first contact with customers.

What happens when the startup’s leader recognizes that the original business model is not working as planned? This is when the founders realize that something is wrong with the business model (because revenue is not scaling.) They decide what to change and then take action to reconfigure some part(s) of their model.

The Customer Development process assumed that many of the initial assumptions about your business model would probably be wrong, so it built in a iteration loop to fix them. Eric Ries coined this business model iteration loop – the Pivot (the process of iteration in search of the successful business model and this process needs to occur rapidly and continuously).

An experienced and seasoned business angel / seed fund provider therefore knows instinctively whether a presentation is a Business Plan, a Business Model or a Pivot.

Equivalently, only when you really appreciate the vital differences implied in Business Plan / Business Model / Business Pivot, you are truly ready for journey of startup / entrepreneurship.

Lessons Learned

A startup is an organization formed to search for a repeatable and scalable business model.
Most startup business models are initially wrong.
The process of iteration in search of the successful business model is called the Pivot.
Pivots need to happen quickly, rapidly and often.
At the seed stage, microcap funds/ superangels understand that companies are still searching for a business model – they get Pivots.
Most of the time when startups go out for Series A or B round, the VC assumption is that a scalable business model has already been found.
Pivots are why startups must be agile and opportunistic and why their cultures are different from large companies

Agriculture is the new golf: Eco-village becoming mainstream?

2010-04-28T10:50:00.001+08:00

In the context of the imminent convergence of crisis of Food / Fuel / Finance (and the connected issues of Sustainability / Relocalization / Transition Town movements), the Eco-village or Agricultural Urbanism concept might receive a big boost.

In cities, agriculture might be able to take the place of vacant lots. And in suburbia? Well, in 2008, the New Urbanism evangelist Andrés Duany, of Duany Plater-Zyberk & Company (DPZ), architects and town planners, proclaimed that “agriculture is the new golf,” a prescient and deliberately provocative claim that is helping frame the conversation about suburbia’s future. “Only 17 percent of people living in golf-course communities play golf more than once a year. Why not grow food?”

Why not indeed? While we may have a way to go before we achieve a reality of agricultural urbanism, Duany’s idea seems increasingly reasonable: that we design around agriculture just as golf communities were designed around courses. (Though even the most fervent fan of farming might concede the disparity in cachet between bogeying and back-hoeing.)

A planner and farmer named Matthew “Quint” Redmond is working on a similar suburban re-envisioning, with his own version of house-meets-farm that he’s calling “agriburbia.” Marketing his efforts with the tag line “Growing sustainable communities by the bushel”, Redmond recalls being laughed out of the room for a similar idea back in 2003, though developers now seem to be taking him more seriously.

In fact, such new agricultural urbanism would be very similar to the development of eco-village, particularly if equal emphases are given to economic, social and environmental factors.

Will these agricultural urbanism promotions make Eco-village projects mainstream, in light of the convergence of Crisis of Food / Fuel / Finance? The successful marketing and implementation of these Agriburbia / Eco-villages would really be good examples of successful Place-making and Crowd-sourcing!

For more details, see: http://www.good.is/post/agriculture-is-the-new-golf-rethinking-suburban-communities/

The Future is Wet

2010-04-03T14:21:00.002+08:00

The Future is Wet.

From Washout (清贫) to TBL Wealth (清富)

The Modern Industrial System is gravitating toward breakdown in economic structure, ecological crisis, and moral or spiritual emptiness, bringing dire consequences to individuals, nations and Mother Earth. It is going to be a complete Washout. Global warming will cause wide-spread flooding, accompanied by environmental degradations world-wide. The Future is Wet.

The route to salvation is a transition to LOHAS (Lifestyle of Health and Sustainability) and SLOHAS (Slow Lifestyle of Happiness and Sustainability), gravitating towards a Lifestyle of Harmony (LOHO) that emphasizes the Triple-Bottom-Line (TBL) of Profit-People-Planet or Economy-Equity-Environment, employing the elements of Life, Love and Green characterized by wetness and tied to Water. The Future is Wet.

This transition requires more than just adequate Hardware and Software. It will require suitable improved Wetware 2.0 because The Future is Wet.

What exactly is Wetware 2.0? It is the Blue-Green-Black Economy. We have to be Blue, before we can be Green or Black, meaning we need water (Blue) before we can have photosynthesis (Green) and therefore build carbon (Black), the basis of Life and Sustainability. The Future is Wet.

Wetware 2.0 is also about Love. Water is always giving and yielding when properly handled. Giving and Sharing yield joy. This uplifts our spirit and our being. Otherwise, the world will be a dry place indeed. The Future is Wet.

Wetware 2.0 is also about living Green. Achieving a smaller carbon-footprint in our life can take many forms. The Transition Movement prepares us for Re-localization of our Home, our Work and our Life. It is a sweet combination of Wealth / Wellness / Wisdom. The Future is Wet.

Wetware 2.0 is therefore about converting Washout to TBL Wealth. It is also a journey from Washout (清贫) to TBL Wealth (清富), because The Future is Wet.

(Foot-note: SOHO Technology 2.0 offers itself as the possible Wetware 2.0)

Transition to LOHAS / SLOHAS

2010-03-16T22:53:00.000+08:00

The determination of Quality of Life in Cities can only be measured by considering comprehensively where and how we live (Home), work and earn our living (Work) and relate to life in its totality (Life). This fine balance of Home-Work-Life is the essence of Quality-of-Life, and is a highly individual matter and keeps on changing throughout our respective tenures on Earth as we pass through different phases of our lives.

However, there are certain common factors that we all look for, such as safety and security, sustainability and resilience, health and happiness, value of time and nature etc. This leads us to the phenomenon and practice of LOHAS (Lifestyle of Health and Sustainability) and its merger with the Slow Movement, forming what can be called SLOHAS (Slow Lifestyle of Happiness and Sustainability).

The 21^st Century will see the global-scale transformation / transition of towns and cities toward LOHAS / SLOHAS as citizens world-wide try to seek a fine balance in the Home-Work-Life matrix in their attempts to get better Quality-of-Life, especially in face of the convergence of crisis of Food / Fuel / Finance and Climate Change etc

Our project, SOHOMINIUM (Small-Office-Home-Office in Condominium) is an Incubator for such Transition to LOHAS / SLOHAS via its Social-Environmental Entrepreneurship Development (SEED) programs and activities.

The Incubator comes in the form of provision of co-working facilities and services (shared office, broad-band Internet access, meeting and conference room for collaboration, synergy, solidarity Plus training and mentorship etc) targeted primarily to improve the social-economic status of the following city-dweller groups or BOP (Bottom-Of-Pyramid) in an environment-friendly and sustainable manner, while bridging the Digital Divide / encouraging Energy Efficiency due to its extensive promotion of ICT skills, social media / social networking etc.

Beneficiaries	Descriptions
House-wives	House-wives or spouses looking for work-from-home business opportunities, while looking after children and family, also seeking opportunities for collaboration, synergy and solidarity not available in SOHO situation. Skills acquisition is also an important consideration
School-Leavers / Fresh Graduates	School-Leavers / Fresh Graduates seeking self-employment via government grants / seed-funding etc. Guidance / Mentorship, Net-working and Collaboration are very important consideration
Retrenched Workers	Retrenched Workers starting a second career via Green Business Opportunities which can be started with minimal capital, while leading a new LOHAS lifestyle. Also seeking opportunities for collaboration, synergy and solidarity.
Retirees	Retirees are Third-Agers looking for a second career (voluntary or otherwise) that will turn their past experience / connections into unique advantages. They could be looking for consulting assignments, book-authorship etc. Also seeking opportunities for collaboration, synergy and solidarity.
Down-Shifters / SLOHAS	Down-Shifters / SLOHAS are powering down (certainly not withdrawing but more engaging) in their career path. Also seeking opportunities for collaboration, synergy and solidarity.

As its name suggests, SOHOMINIUM (Small-Office-Home-Office in Condominium) could be widely incorporated into existing / future condominium projects or housing estates. Join-venture with or sponsorship by property developers or other stake-holders would create win-win-win situation.

Operationally, the proposed project would strive for a combination of ICT and Environment theme or approach, giving prominence to IBM 2.0 / ICT 2.0 / APPLE 2.0 with IBM 2.0 (representing Incubator + Biotech + Media) / ICT 2.0 (representing Internet + Carbon + Transition) / APPLE 2.0 (representing Alliance for Post Petroleum Local Economy), taking advantage of the tremendous recall-value of the well-known giants in the digital world, thus emphasizing the important role of the digital tools / social media in social-environmental enterprises, as well as the importance of Biotechnology and Carbon in the overall scheme of things.

The project will therefore result in the creation a “Better City, Better Life” in the form of vibrant LOHAS / SLOHAS sectors, while bridging the Digital Divide / promoting Energy Efficiency due to its extensive promotion of ICT skills, social media / social networking in service of the creation of green businesses and green practices through the SEED (Social-Environment Entrepreneurship Development) programs and activities.

Do you have these Fifth Assets?

2010-02-15T17:41:00.002+08:00

In this materialistic world, how many of these Fifth Assets have you experienced or acquired? You will be surprised how much you could be changed when you reached the 5^th stage of acquisition / experiencing:

	Estates	Screens	Permie Zones
First (1^st)	Clergy	Cinema	Annual Herbs
Second (2^nd)	Nobility	Television	Perennial Fruits
Third (3^rd)	Common Citizen	Computer	Main Tree Crop
Fourth (4^th)	Press	Smart-Phone	Semi-Wild
Fifth (5^th)	Blogsphere	Telescope	Wild (Nature)

In the process of growing up, we get to experience / acquire these various Estates / Screens / Permaculture Zones. These assets impact on us in different ways, sometimes unconsciously. We certainly recall the first personal encounter in awe in each of the above circumstances.

A very typical example is our personal sweet encounters with the First Screen (Cinema), Second Screen (Television), Third Screen (Computer), Fourth Screen (Smart-Phone) and, perhaps (for the lucky ones amongst us), Fifth Screen (Telescope). We are certainly profoundly and for ever changed for the experience / acquisition of these screens.

Although each of the above assets has their respective uniqueness and significance, I would particularly give prominence to the Fifth Assets (Blogsphere, Telescope and Wildness or Nature) because of the feel of totality or holism such Fifth Assets could provide or reveal.

How many of these Fifth Assets have you experienced / acquired?